Philadelphia model and mother-of-two Tessa Snyder, 29, is now sharing the details of her journey to self-acceptance after making the difficult choice to amputate her leg at the age of 11 (pictured then) due to cancer

A Philadelphia model and mother-of-two is now sharing the details of her journey to self-acceptance after making the difficult choice to amputate her leg at the age of 11 to increase her odds of surviving cancer.

Tessa Snyder, 29, was diagnosed with bone cancer in her right femur in 2000, after doctors first thought she was experiencing growing pains.

A few months later, she made the call to have her limb removed in order to give herself the best possible chance of survival.

After making that difficult decision, years of struggle ensued, with not only body image issues after losing her long brown hair, but also feeling out of place and friendless, and the enormous task of learning to walk again.

Finally, nearly two decades after her surgery to remove her leg, she's ready to embrace the decision that gave her a chance to live her life, grow and start a family.

'I love that at almost 30-years-old I feel more beautiful and sexier than ever,' Snyder told The Mirror. 'I can’t believe I used to let so many things get to me. Cancer sucks, and having one leg may not be ideal sometimes, but I was given a second chance at life.'

Now, she's hoping that sharing her story can help other amputees embrace their wounds as well.

Finally, nearly two decades after her surgery to remove her leg, she's ready to embrace the decision that gave her a chance to live her life, grow and start a family, saying, 'I love that at almost 30-years-old I feel more beautiful and sexier than ever'

'It’s taken me almost 20 years to fully accept my prosthesis,' Snyder said.

'There are days when I don’t want to wear it or days when it hurts, and it gives me sores. But one thing I realized is that I couldn’t keep living my life hating something that I couldn’t change.'

Snyder, who now lives with her husband, Casey, and their two sons, first started complaining of pains in her leg during the spring of 2000, but wouldn't get the scary prognosis that she had osteogenic sarcoma on her right femur until months later.

'Little by little I would wake up every day for school and the pain would get worse every morning,' she said. 'One morning I woke up in tears because it took a good couple of minutes for me to be able to bend my leg.'

Snyder, who now lives with her husband, Casey, and their two sons, first started complaining of pains in her leg during the spring of 2000, but wouldn't get the scary prognosis that she had osteogenic sarcoma on her right femur until months later

'Little by little I would wake up every day for school and the pain would get worse every morning,' she said; Snyder is pictured at left as a child, and as an adult, at right

She remembers the day she got the terrifying news, 10 days after she had a biopsy on her leg

After the pain became unbearable to the touch a couple of months later, she was ordered in for an MRI.

She remembers the day she got the life-changing news, 10 days after she had a biopsy on her leg.

'I was sitting in a room being checked out by the surgeon, making sure the stitches had healed,' she said.

'He stood in front of me and explained as simply as he could to an 11-year-old that I had cancer.'

'I was sitting in a room being checked out by the surgeon, making sure the stitches had healed,' she said; 'He stood in front of me and explained as simply as he could to an 11-year-old that I had cancer'

After being diagnosed, Snyder quickly began chemotherapy treatments almost every week for about seven months, and it was brutal, often causing her to throw up what little she would try to eat, and resulting in the loss of her beloved long, brown hair

Two months into that horrific experience, her parents came to her with the idea to amputate her leg, cutting above where the tumor was to limit any chance of the cancer coming back

After being diagnosed, Snyder quickly began chemotherapy treatments almost every week for about seven months, and it was brutal, often causing her to throw up what little she would try to eat, and resulting in the loss of her beloved long, brown hair.

'I couldn’t keep food down, so I had a feeding tube inserted in me,' she said. 'I had no outside life because I was in hospital for five days a week most weeks.'

Two months into that horrific experience, her parents came to her with the idea to amputate her leg, cutting above where the tumor was to limit any chance of the cancer coming back

'I think my parents wanted to give me some sort of power by giving me the chance to decide what I wanted to do,' she said.

'They showed me pictures of people who went on to live great lives and explained I’d be able to walk, run and play sports again.

'Even in my 11-year-old mind I thought, "If I could get rid of my leg and never have to go through this again, why not?"'

'I think my parents wanted to give me some sort of power by giving me the chance to decide what I wanted to do,' she said

'Even in my 11-year-old mind I thought, "If I could get rid of my leg and never have to go through this again, why not?"' and she made the call to go through with the amputation

Snyder made the call to go through with the removal of her right left, and on September 29, 2000, she underwent the procedure.

Afterward, while hooked up to a morphine drip as her parents greeted with her hugs and kisses, she recalled saying, 'Dad, I did it,' a phrase which her father has reminded her of, again and again, to this day.

'He’ll never let me live that down, as he shouldn’t,' Snyder said. Following her amputation, her struggles were only beginning.

'There were countless times of frustration and anger, but not once did I want to give up,' she said.

Three months later, in January of 2001, she was pronounced cancer-free.

'The year of 2001 was a new year for the new me. I focused on becoming stronger while learning how to walk with a prosthesis,' she said.

'My first prosthetic didn’t bend at the knee, but it was specifically designed to gain strength and mobility, so I could "feel" what it was like to stand on two feet again after three months of not being able to.'

Going back to school with her prosthetic was difficult, with Snyder often feeling out of place and like she wouldn't be accepted or have any friends, she said, especially in her teenage years.

On September 29, 2000, Snyder underwent the procedure to have her right leg amputated

Three months later, in January of 2001, she was pronounced cancer-free, and embarking on a journey to self-acceptance

After battling through that hard time, Snyder has now come out on the other side, with a profound appreciation for the life she's been able to live thanks to the decision she made as a pre-teen in a very scary situation

After battling through that hard time, Snyder has now come out on the other side, with a profound appreciation for the life she's been able to live thanks to the decision she made as a pre-teen in a very scary situation.

'My prosthetic is a part of me and it’s who I am. It gives me the ability to take me places I want to go and to be able to experience life with my children and partner,' she said.

'I can’t even remember what life was like on my original two legs. This is normal now.'

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Through it all, Snyder said she's learned so much, but mostly how to grow.

'Growth is such a beautiful thing that we all have the ability to achieve,' she said. 'Self-acceptance, growing and learning to love ourselves are the keys to happiness in my eyes.'

She added: 'If I get to help one person through my journey, then my purpose on earth is worth it. Almost 20 years later, I am proud to say to that little 11-year-old girl, thank you for not giving up.'

'If I get to help one person through my journey, then my purpose on earth is worth it. Almost 20 years later, I am proud to say to that little 11-year-old girl, thank you for not giving up,' she said